BLANIK L-13 AD Status

On Feb 4, 12:29*am, Marc wrote:
On Feb 3, 8:57*am, Bob Kuykendall wrote:

The situation begs the wider questions, where do we get new glider
pilots if trainers become so scarce and expensive? If we let the cost
of soaring instruction rise with the burdened price of training
gliders, who will want to even start? Do we let the commercial,
consumerist, invisible hand of the marketplace sweep our sport from
the sky? Or is there some legitimate way to subvert the laws of supply
and demand?

www.retroplane.net/forum/download.php?id=496

What if they had based the design on the K13, rather than the K18?
I've spent the last 5 years designing a low cost winch (yes, I'm slow,
but I'm almost ready to cut metal, really), and am acutely aware of
the fact that there aren't a lot of decent low cost training gliders
left to go along with our winch...

Marc

Hmm,

I hate posting via Google, I can't make links work anymore. That was
a link to an article on the Edgeley EA9 Optimist glider, a K18 clone
with 80% of the components laser cut from pre-cured Fibrelam honeycomb
sheets. Try again:

http://tinyurl.com/45kd3ah

Marc

At 08:38 04 February 2011, Marc wrote:
On Feb 4, 12:29=A0am, Marc wrote:
On Feb 3, 8:57=A0am, Bob Kuykendall wrote:

The situation begs the wider questions, where do we get new glider
pilots if trainers become so scarce and expensive? If we let the
cost
of soaring instruction rise with the burdened price of training
gliders, who will want to even start? Do we let the commercial,
consumerist, invisible hand of the marketplace sweep our sport from
the sky? Or is there some legitimate way to subvert the laws of
supply
and demand?

www.retroplane.net/forum/download.php?id=3D496

What if they had based the design on the K13, rather than the K18?
I've spent the last 5 years designing a low cost winch (yes, I'm
slow,
but I'm almost ready to cut metal, really), and am acutely aware of
the fact that there aren't a lot of decent low cost training gliders
left to go along with our winch...

Marc

Hmm,

I hate posting via Google, I can't make links work anymore. That was
a link to an article on the Edgeley EA9 Optimist glider, a K18 clone
with 80% of the components laser cut from pre-cured Fibrelam honeycomb
sheets. Try again:

http://tinyurl.com/45kd3ah

Marc

Edgeley did have a two seater on the drawing board - Edgeley EA10 - was
going to be produced for the Faulkes Flying Foundation.
However don't think marketing was his strong point -hence no sales on
the EA9, and no development of the EA10.

On Feb 3, 9:19*am, Tim Hanke wrote:
Current Status of the Blanik L-13 SPAR AD Grounding?

Does anyone know what the current status of the Blanik L-13 Eddy
Current testing procedure is? Has the University of Prague developed
this procedure for LET’s review?

It is my understanding the clubs of *the Czech Republic have been
flying the L-13’s by claiming hardship to the Czech Federal
Government. This doesn’t help the situation, as there is no pressure
being applied against the LET Factory.

Thanks for any information you may be able to provide.

Tim Hanke
Adirondack Soaring Group, Inc.
Saratoga Springs, NY USA

On Feb 3, 11:08*pm, GM wrote:

2) not quite true: pretty much all L-13 I have seen in operation in
Europe were used primarily in winch operations with the Y-bridle.


All my USA winch launches in the L-13 also used the bridle. It works
well but is a bit more tricky to hook up that a more common Tost CG
hook. There was nothing I was aware of about the characteristics of
the L-13 on a bridle that made it unsuitable for winch training.

Andy

At 12:39 04 February 2011, Tim Hanke wrote:
On Feb 3, 9:19=A0am, Tim Hanke wrote:
Current Status of the Blanik L-13 SPAR AD Grounding?

Does anyone know what the current status of the Blanik L-13 Eddy
Current testing procedure is? Has the University of Prague developed
this procedure for LET=92s review?

It is my understanding the clubs of =A0the Czech Republic have been
flying the L-13=92s by claiming hardship to the Czech Federal
Government. This doesn=92t help the situation, as there is no pressure
being applied against the LET Factory.

Thanks for any information you may be able to provide.

Tim Hanke
Adirondack Soaring Group, Inc.
Saratoga Springs, NY USA



Tim,

To answer your question "No I don't know what LET is doing."

But, I do know this. If you have a L13 as a trainer, the 2011 training
season is in jeopardy! The reason I say this is the amount of time
between now and the start of the season vs. the duration it will take to
get a clean bill of health for you L13.

The process to get a clean bill of health will involve activities like
this:

-LET completes the prototype testing
-They submit the test method to EASA for approval
-New AD issued
-FAA accepts this AD
-Locate a certified Aviation NDE tech to perform the test
-They manufacture the eddy current probe. (It might be custom)
-Then they perform the test.

If there are no defects found, then you will be able to fly. But, the
process stated above will take a long time and it won't be done by the
begining of the 2011 flying season.

My recommendation to you is that you contact another glider training
organization and make arrangements for your group to temporarily learn
there. This way you won't loose the 2011 season.

Regarding my knowledge with Non Destructive Examination (NDE), the company
I work for builds nuclear power generating equipment. We do a lot of NDE
testing with Eddy Current and Xray. I'm not the NDE expert, but I know
what is involved with developing a prototype Eddy Current system and what
is involved with the execution of the test. I seriously doubt L13's will
be flying at the begining of this coming season.

Good Luck,

Andrew

At 06:17 04 February 2011, GM wrote:

I like that idea! Form a Blanik interest group to pool some cash.
Build a simplified wing without the complex Fowler-flaps and an
updated airfoil. How about a composite wing to get over that metal
fatigue issue? That would breath new life into the old bird.

And while we're at it, why not design and build an improved fuselage with
better visibility and some comfort designed in? Do that, and the Blanik
will be the bird it should have been from the beginning.

Jim Beckman

At 12:39 04 February 2011, Tim Hanke wrote:
On Feb 3, 9:19=A0am, Tim Hanke wrote:
Current Status of the Blanik L-13 SPAR AD Grounding?

Does anyone know what the current status of the Blanik L-13 Eddy
Current testing procedure is? Has the University of Prague developed
this procedure for LET=92s review?

It is my understanding the clubs of =A0the Czech Republic have been
flying the L-13=92s by claiming hardship to the Czech Federal
Government. This doesn=92t help the situation, as there is no pressure
being applied against the LET Factory.

Thanks for any information you may be able to provide.

Tim Hanke
Adirondack Soaring Group, Inc.
Saratoga Springs, NY USA



Tim,

To answer your question "No I don't know what LET is doing."

But, I do know this. If you have a L13 as a trainer, the 2011 training
season is in jeopardy! The reason I say this is the amount of time
between now and the start of the season vs. the duration it will take to
get a clean bill of health for you L13.

The process to get a clean bill of health will involve activities like
this:

-LET completes the prototype testing
-They submit the test method to EASA for approval
-New AD issued
-FAA accepts this AD
-Locate a certified Aviation NDE tech to perform the test
-They manufacture the eddy current probe. (It might be custom)
-Then they perform the test.

If there are no defects found, then you will be able to fly. But, the
process stated above will take a long time and it won't be done by the
begining of the 2011 flying season.

My recommendation to you is that you contact another glider training
organization and make arrangements for your group to temporarily learn
there. This way you won't loose the 2011 season.

Regarding my knowledge with Non Destructive Examination (NDE), the company
I work for builds nuclear power generating equipment. We do a lot of NDE
testing with Eddy Current and Xray. I'm not the NDE expert, but I know
what is involved with developing a prototype Eddy Current system and what
is involved with the execution of the test. I seriously doubt L13's will
be flying at the begining of this coming season.

Good Luck,

Andrew

On Feb 3, 4:36*pm, Ken Latam wrote:

There are enuff Home Builder's out there, what is stopping us from reverse
enginering the wing and doing a wood spar and built up rib's. By using all
the factory fitting's and linkage's,it should not be that much heart
ache. *

I think that the trouble there is that these days wood offers a
relatively poor value proposition in terms of strength and stiffness
per unit dollar. That is especially true when torsional stiffness is
as important as it is on the Blanik. The forward sweep means that the
structure is closer to divergence than would be an unswept wing.

I think that the trouble there is that these days wood offers a
relatively poor value proposition in terms of strength and stiffness
per unit dollar. That is especially true when torsional stiffness is
as important as it is on the Blanik. The forward sweep means that the
structure is closer to divergence than would be an unswept wing.


If I were to redo the L-13 wing,first thing would be to remove the forward
sweep and use a strait leading edge with the taper on the trailing edge.
And leave off the wingtip torpedo's,maybe have 45degree winglet's
instead. It will need to go thru the whole certification process anyway so
may as well make change's to simlpify the build.

Ken

Ken Latam wrote:

If I were to redo the L-13 wing,first thing would be to remove the forward
sweep....


The forward sweep is there so that the main spar does not go through the
rear seat - which would annoy the occupant. :-) Losing the forward sweep
would require a redesign of the fuselage.

Tony